Thursday, January 4, 2018

Torah Portion - January 4, 2018

Weekly Torah Studies


Today's Torah Reading: Genesis 4



Today's 
Torah
Portion: 
The Hebrew Alphabet: Bet


Bet = 2 and is B of Hebrew. It is also sometimes called Vet which is the V of Hebrew.
·   BET is the Hebrew word for HOUSE and for TEMPLE.

·   BET is the number of DIVISION and of UNITY. Yahshua DIVIDED Himself from His Father’s HOUSE in Heaven to come to earth and UNITE with mankind.


Yahshua explained, “Destroy this TEMPLE, and in 3 days I will raise it up… But He spoke of the TEMPLE of His Body.” (John 2:19 & 21)

Messiah IS our Home… We abide in Him. And He desires to make His Home (TEMPLE) in our hearts.


Yahshua came to Tabernacle with us. Because of this Gift, mankind may be united with Heaven once again.
The BET looks like a side view of the manger (sukkot) where Yahshua was born.


The traditional Sukkah is a BET. As we dwell in it, it represents Messiah coming in to our hearts and “supping” with us.

“Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear My Voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with Me,” Revelation 3:20

Referring to the Heavenly Jerusalem, John wrote, “And I saw no TEMPLE therein; for Yahweh God Almighty and the LAMB are the TEMPLE of it,” Revelation 21:22.

Yahshua is the Great Divider. He is our Righteous Judge Who will come in His Glory. “And before Him shall be gathered all nations; and He shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd DIVIDES his sheep from the goats,” Matthew 25:32.

The Scriptures begin with the book of Genesis, but in Hebrew this book is named after its first word: בְּרֵאשִׁית (bereshit). The first letter of revelation from Yahweh, then, was the Bet found in this word.


Though Yahshua is the Creator and Builder, He is also the

Gate of the Sheep Pen. John quotes Yahshua this way: “I tell 

you the Truth, the man who does not enter the sheep pen by 

the GATE, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a 

robber… I tell you Truth, I AM the Gate for the sheep… I AM 

the Gate; whoever enters through Me will be saved…” (John 

10:1-9).

The earliest way to 

draw BET was to 

make a Sheepfold. In 

Bible times, a sheep 

pen was a stone enclosure, shaped very much like the letter 

Bet, if you were looking at it from the top view. It was used to 

contain the sheep at night. The sheep were herded into the 

sheep pen, by way of the GATE, before dark. Then the 

Shepherd slept across the opening to ensure their safety. 

This is a beautiful picture for Yahweh’s Last Day saints- 
straight from Psalm 91 “He who dwells in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty…”

Psalm 119:9-16 Shows the BET:


In Psalm 119:9-16, we find the BET section. In this part of 

Psalm 119, we see what it takes to Tabernacle with Yahweh, 

or dwell in His House (Temple) – which is the essence of 

what it means to be His Church. This is also how to dwell 

safely in His Sheepfold:

BETH. Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? 

By taking heed thereto according to Thy Word. 

With my whole heart have I sought Thee: 

O let me not wander from Thy Commandments. 

Thy Word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against Thee. 

Blessed art Thou, O YAHWEH: 

teach me Thy Statutes.  

With my lips have I declared all the Judgments of Thy Mouth.  

I have rejoiced in the Way of Thy Testimonies, as much as in all riches. 

I will meditate in Thy Precepts, and have respect unto Thy Ways.  

I will delight myself in Thy Statutes: I will not forget Thy Word.


This Week's Torah Studies: (Statutes 1-20)
The Torah studies are provided in two formats for your convenience. The first option (below) is the blank worksheets for this week, which will allow you to print out the worksheets and hand-write the studies yourself. If you have less time, you may wish to read/print my completed Statute studies. The completed worksheets are in Microsoft Word format and are the second option (below):




An Overview of this Week's Torah Studies:
While we will be reading through the Torah in order (see this week's Torah Reading), we will not be studying the Commandments and Statutes in order. Since the Shema (Deuteronomy 6:4-9) is the heart of the Torah, it is appropriate to start with it. The Shema is the Torah portion which is written in the Mezzuzah and put upon the doorposts of the house. So, our Torah studies will be following another order. Also, in order to study all Ten Commandments and all 613 Statutes in a year, it is necessary to complete several studies each day, as shown below. Happy studying!


Statute 1 Summary:
(1) Submit to Yahweh as the One and only God in the Universe. Make Him First in your life, thinking and heart.
Deuteronomy 6:4  “Hear, O Israel: Yahweh our God is one Yah.”  
Statute 2 Summary:
(2) Love Yahweh with every fiber of your being.
Deuteronomy 6:5  “And thou shalt love Yahweh thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.”
Statute 3 Summary:
(3) In Keeping His Commands, we Worship and reverence Yahweh, as our Heavenly Father.
Deuteronomy 6:1-2,13, 25  “Now these are the Commandments, the Statutes, and the Judgments, which Yahweh your God commanded to teach you, that ye might do them in the land whither ye go to possess it: That thou mightest fear Yahweh thy God, to keep all His Statutes and His Commandments, which I command thee, thou, and thy son, and thy son's son, all the days of thy life; and that thy days may be prolonged… Thou shalt fear Yahweh thy God, and serve Him, and shalt swear by His Name… And it shall be our righteousness, if we observe to do all these commandments before Yahweh our God, as He hath commanded us.”
Statute 4 Summary:
(4) Serve Yahweh as Your Heavenly Father.
Exodus 23:25  “And ye shall serve Yahweh your God, and He shall bless thy bread, and thy water; and I will take sickness away from the midst of thee.”
Statute 5 Summary:
(5) Hold fast to Yahweh and take all your vows and oaths in His Name.
Deuteronomy 10:20  “Thou shalt fear the LORD thy God; Him shalt thou serve, and to Him shalt thou cleave, and swear by His Name.”
Statute 6 Summary:
(6) Only take oaths in Yahweh’s Name, when you reverence Him as your Father.
Deuteronomy 6:13 “Thou shalt fear Yahweh thy God, and serve Him, and shalt swear by His Name.”
Statute 7 Summary:
(7) Keep Yahweh’s Law and walk in all His Ways. When we do Yahweh swears to make us holy.
Deuteronomy 28:9 “The LORD shall establish thee an holy people unto Himself, as He hath sworn unto thee, if thou shalt keep the Commandments of Yahweh thy God, and walk in His ways.”
Statute 8 Summary:
(8) Hallow Yahweh and do not profane His Holy Name.
Leviticus 22:32 “Neither shall ye profane My Holy Name; but I will be hallowed among the children of Israel: I Am Yahweh which hallow you.”
Statutes 9-10 Summary:
(9) Meditate on Yahweh’s Law, (10) teaching it to your household, in your “down time,” when you travel, before bed at night and first thing in the morning.
Deuteronomy 6:7  “And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.” (And Deut 6:7)
Statute 11 Summary:
(11) Do not trust in any power but Yahweh.. Worship Him alone.
Leviticus 19:4  “Turn ye not unto idols, nor make to yourselves molten gods: I Am Yahweh your God.”
Statute 12 Summary:
(12) Do not make gods out of anything.
Exodus 20:23  “Ye shall not make with Me gods of silver, neither shall ye make unto you gods of gold.”
Statutes 13-16 Summary:
(13) Do not worship representations of God, for He has not shown us His form. (14) Do not make, (15) bow down to, (16) nor worship images of any created thing.
Deuteronomy 4:15-19  “Take ye therefore good heed unto yourselves; for ye saw no manner of similitude on the day that Yahweh spake unto you in Horeb out of the midst of the fire: Lest ye corrupt yourselves, and make you a graven image, the similitude of any figure, the likeness of male or female, the likeness of any beast that is on the earth, the likeness of any winged fowl that flieth in the air,  the likeness of anything that creepeth on the ground, the likeness of any fish that is in the waters beneath the earth: And lest thou lift up thine eyes unto heaven, and when thou seest the sun, and the moon, and the stars, even all the host of heaven, shouldest be driven to worship them, and serve them, which Yahweh thy God hath divided unto all nations under the whole heaven.”  
Statutes 17-18 Summary:
(17) Do not give your children to any false god, nor offer them as sacrifices to them. (18) Do not profane Yahweh’s Name.
Leviticus 18:21  “And thou shalt not let any of thy seed pass through the fire to Molech, neither shalt thou profane the Name of thy God: I Am Yahweh.”

Statutes 19-20 Summary:
(19) Do not turn to mediums or familiar spirits. (20) Do not seek after them.
Leviticus 19:31 “Regard not them that have familiar spirits, neither seek after wizards, to be defiled by them: I Am Yahweh your God.”

Daily Bible Reading - January 4, 2018

Today's Reading:

Luke 7:1-17

Genesis 8-10

Psalm 4

Listen to Bible

 

 

 

 

Thoughts and Commentary on Today's Reading:

Psalm 4 is the most powerful intercessory prayer in the Bible. Since this incredible prayer formula is in today's reading selection, I absolutely must address it and point out the powerful elements it contains. There is so much in this vital chapter that I will share it in parts, which I have already presented in the following blogs:

Part 1: Introduction: How God Introduced Me to the Psalm 4 Prayer

Part 2: Step 1 - What it Means to Stand in Awe 

Part 3: Step 2 - What it Means to Sin Not

Part 4: Steps 3-4 - How to Commune with God and Be Still

Part 5: Step 5 - How to Offer the Sacrifices of Righteousness on Another's Behalf

Be sure to add a COMMENT on this blog, sharing with us anything you found meaningful in your reading of today's Scripture passages. We will all love to hear from you (please keep the Comment relevant to today's reading - Thx!)